What Makes 2019 Different from Years Past?

What makes this year different from last is what made last year different from the one before that. The change easily encapsulates into three key areas.

Inbox Competition

When there is more competition for your attention, you instinctively start thinning the herd. Think about your own email account for a moment. (You may have to go back several years for this.)

Upon first opening, you got excited whenever the word “Inbox” went bold and featured a number next to it. “You’ve got mail!”

It didn’t take you long to realize a lot of those messages were either blatant or cleverly-disguised spam. Over the passage of time, you started whisking those messages to the trash bin with a single swipe, unopened.

Your audience is no different. The messages you send better be useful, or you’ll end up on the afterthought list.

Marketing Cynicism

Consumers are more cynical about everything these days. While institutional trust is up, it’s tougher for religious bodies, politicians, and marketers.

Too many customers have been burned by empty promises or products that don’t work either promoted via social media platforms or web. Email marketers have the added annoyance of sharing the same medium as people who perpetrate phishing scams.

It’s a tough climate. And it demands a compelling hook to achieve effective email subject lines. In the next section, we’ll show you exactly what yours should be doing to get around these issues.

Now, most consumers are wise to the fact businesses won’t just stop offering deals forever. If you have a recurring offer that never changes, for instance, your opt-ins will recognize the pattern.

As a result, they won’t be as likely to buy. The thought: “I’ll just do it the next time around.”

But if you can create a new twist each time, you’re likely to overcome their complacency. If you have one “25 percent off all purchases” day each month, consider singling out a unique item. Offer an even deeper discount in addition to the standard deal, and they’ll be more likely to bite.

From there, make that one item the focus of your subject line. “[Item Name] 30% off this Saturday only + 25% off all purchases.”

2. Stimulate Curiosity in the Subject

Urgency marketing often demands a more upfront approach with your offer. But the hard sell isn’t always necessary. In fact, sometimes it can be a turnoff.

What if you sent them an email like, “DO NOT OPEN”? Some would take you up on that, perhaps sensing a sales pitch. However, many would wonder why you don’t want them to open the message you sent!

Curiosity also can work in a subtler sense. Imagine you’ve got a recipient who’s signed up for your newsletter. They already trust what you have to say to a certain extent.

Simply leveling a “This changed me” in the subject line can generate enough curiosity to get a click. Either way, make sure the content on the other side delivers on the promise. Otherwise, they’ll never again trust your use of this approach.

3. Boldly Serve Up Your Offer

Just being upfront about the message can go a long way. “I’m giving away my book for free.” If they’ve been on the fence, that’ll get them to click.

You can combine this with a sense of urgency (“today only”) to improve the odds. This particularly works well when you’ve got the value to back it up. Otherwise, it can get a little spammy.

4. Cater to the Individual

It’s tougher — or at least seems that way — when you’re working from a larger list. But not really. You just have to think in smaller, more segmented terms.

How do you do this? By focusing first on pain points more than individuals. Put together a list of recurring complaints or requests or concerns.

From the list, start baking a message that will appeal to the individuals who’ve shared those particular issues. You also want to use your list-building tools to group each individual within their respective segment.

Make sure the message is on point. Then, boil it down to a subject that will capture your targeted segment.

6. Make It Famous

As you build your audience, make note of the top ones in your field. They have the capacity to sway the masses with a single sentence.

The financial world is a great example of this. If your Average Joe says something about a stock, few will listen beyond the circle of people who trust him. If Warren Buffett endorses that same stock, however, it’ll go through the roof.

People will be rushing to buy it. Changing their retirement plans overnight just to do what the Oracle of Omaha tells them.

Here’s where your email subject line comes into play. Stay plugged into these influencers, and you can piggyback on their brilliance.

You tell us what’s better: “Buy this stock now if you want to retire early”? Or “Warren Buffett shares the one stock that’ll guarantee you an early retirement”?

Most people would go for the Buffett version. So consider ways you can harness famous people for more effective email subject lines.

7. Get Out Your Paintbrush

Hoping by now you see email marketing subject lines can be effective in many forms. You can be vague or you can be specific.

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